A Basic Introduction to Video Composition

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A Basic Introduction to Video Composition
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Overview

• Shot Types
• Camera Angles
• Composition

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Shot Types
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The Basic Shot Types

• Wide Shot or Establishing Shot (WS)
• Medium Shot (MS)
• Close-Up (CU)
• Extreme Close-Up (ECU)
• Two Shot
• Over the Shoulder Shot (OTS)
• Reaction Shot
• B-Roll

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Establishing Shot
Wide Shot (WS)

• This is used, usually as the first shot in the
  sequence so the audience understands where the
  location is.

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Wide Shots (WS)

• This type of shot shows the subject's
  relationship to the environment.
• For people, the WS is generally a head to toe
  shot

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Medium Shots (MS)

• The MS is closer than the WS so the viewer feels
  part of the action.
• A MS of a person is generally head to mid-thigh

Medium-Close-Up (MCU)
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Close-Ups (CU)

• Use this shot sparingly.  Because its so close,
  it doesnt take much time to see everything in
  this shot as compared to the amount of visual
  information in a Wide Shot.
• A CU shot of a person is generally head to
  mid-chest.

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Extreme Close-Ups (ECU)

• The ECU gets right in and shows extreme detail.
  You need a specific reason to get this close!
• An ECU of a person generally cuts off the top of
  the head but leaves the chin in the shot keep
  the eyes on the third.
• Often used as a cut-away shot reveal details of
  the subject

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Cut-Away and Cut-In

• Cutaway- something other than the current action.
  
• Its used as a "buffer" between shots (to help
  the editing process), or to add
  interest/information.

• Cut In- specifically refers to showing some part
  of the subject in detail.
• Can be used purely to cover an edit point, or
  to emphasize emotion.

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Two Shot

• There are a few variations on this one, but the
  basic idea is to have a comfortable shot of two
  people.
• Often used in interviews, soap operas or when two
  presenters are hosting a show.

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Over The Shoulder (OTS)

• To get a MS of Amy speaking during this
  interview, we are shooting over Kyles Shoulder.
• This is also known as an Over-the-Shoulder
  2-Shot

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Reaction Shot

• Common in interviews, this is a shot of the
  person listening and/or reacting while the other
  person is still talking.
• Used to add interest or to cover an edit point.

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Camera Angles
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Camera Angles

• Eye-Level Angle - the camera is eye-level with
  the subject, (standing or sitting.)
• It gives a feeling of equality or neutrality with
  the subject.

• High-Level Angle- The high angle puts the viewer
  in a superior position of the subject.
• A high level angle can make the subject look
  small, diminished, or weak.

• Low-Level Angle - Here, the camera (i.e. the
  viewer) is looking up at the subject.
• The subject may appear stronger or fuller than if
  an eye-level angle was used.

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Composition
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Rules of Composition

• Rule of Thirds
• Pleasing placement of horizon, objects and people
  within the frame
• Directs Attention
• Leads the eye to the primary subject
• Increases Sense of Depth
• Provides Interesting Visual Organization

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Rules of Composition

• Rule of Thirds
• Tic-Tac-Toe
• Horizon line
• Power points
• People
• Head Room
• Lead Room

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Rules Of Third

• Tic Tac Toe Concept
• Divide the picture into thirds horizontally and
  vertically with lines. Placing key elements in
  the shot along those lines adds interest and
  balance to the shot.

• Horizon Line
• Place the Horizon Line along the Upper Third or
  Lower Third Horizontal Line, depending on if you
  want to focus on the foreground or background.

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Rule of Thirds

• Power Points
• Placing the main subject at the intersection of
  these lines helps to focus attention on the
  subject.

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Rule of Thirds

• People
• No Matter how wide or close a shot, you should
  put eyes on the upper third line.
• Also, putting a person on the vertical lines
  instead of dead center, makes a more interesting
  shot.

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Rule of Thirds

• Head Room
• The space between the top of the persons head
  and the top of the frame.
• When using the Upper Third Line for Eyes, this
  usually created good head-room.

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Rule of Thirds

• Lead Room
• AKA Talk Space or Walk Space
• You want to put space between the person and the
  edge of the frame in the direction they are
  looking (or moving).  The more they are looking
  toward the edge of the frame the more space you
  want to use. 

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Rules of Composition

• Directs Attention toward the subject

• Leading Lines
• Frame-in-a-Frame
• Triangular Shapes

• Color
• Contrast
• Size
• Position
• Power-points

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Directing Attention

• Color- Using color can direct a persons
  attention directly to something
• The flowers are the first thing you notice in
  this picture

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Directing Attention

• Contrast- Put your subject on a contrasting
  background to make it pop.
• The cat contrasts well against the snow

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Directing Attention

• Size- Usually, your eye is draw to the larger
  element on the screen
• Whats the first thing you look at?
• The front tree, because its larger and stands
  out more.

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Directing Attention

• Position- The higher an object appears in the
  frame, the farther away we take it to be.
• Notice the mountains are higher on the
  two-dimensional surface of the picture.

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Directing Attention

• Leading Lines- Creating lines in your shot that
  Lead the audiences attention a certain way.
• The fence line draws the eye through the shot
  to the end of the dock

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Directing Attention

• Power Points
• Placing the main subject at the intersection of
  these lines helps to focus attention on the
  subject.

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Directing Attention

• Frame-in-a-Frame The trees in the foreground are
  framing the house in the background
• Remember that you are looking THROUGH the frame
  created by something in the foreground to focus
  attention on a subject in the background

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Directing Attention

• Triangular groupings of objects or people
  provide a natural path for the eye to follow from
  one object or person to another.

Renoir, Luncheon of the Boating Party Can you see
the all the triangular groupings in this famous
painting? Some are marked.
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Simulating Depth

• Size
• Position
• Overlap
• Atmosphere
• Convergence

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Simulating Depth

• Size
• The rocks in the picture are bigger than the
  trees. Because our brains "know" that the rocks
  are actually smaller, we "see" the rocks as
  closer to us than the trees.

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Simulating Depth

• Position
• The higher an object appears in the frame, the
  farther away we take it to be.
• Notice that the bridge is higher on the
  two-dimensional surface of the picture, therefore
  our minds eye tells us that it is further
  away.

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Simulating Depth

• Overlap
• Because the bush overlaps part of the door, we
  interpret the bush is "in front of" the door and
  therefore nearer to us.

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Simulating Depth

• Atmosphere (Literally)
• The cliffs in this shot get paler, bluer and
  less distinct the farther away they are from the
  camera
• That's because the volume of air between
  real-world objects and the viewer affect the
  contrast, color saturation, and resolution of
  those objects.

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Simulating Depth

• Convergence
• Actual and Virtual lines coming together
  (converging) at some point in the distance.
• The actual lines created by the road markings
  narrow as they recede toward the horizon in the
  distance.
• The virtual lines connecting the receding trees
  also converge.

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Good Visualization
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Visual Organization

• Simplicity
• reduces the number of visual elements to just the
  important ones.
• Do this simply by limiting or eliminating
  distracting elements from your shots.
• You can also often simplify a shot by changing
  to an extreme low or high angle.

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Visual Organization

• Rule of Thirds
• Use the rule of thirds to achieve balance of
  positive and negative space.

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Important Points
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Recording Mode SP vs. LP

• Short Play vs Long Play
• Always use SP
• Why?
• Better quality!!!
• Some Mini DV Decks cant read tapes in LP

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Life-less Shots

• No movement or life in shot.
• These might make nice photos, but not good for
  video.
• Dont have people pose in lifeless positions.
  Think of something they should do, then direct
  them to do it while youre shooting.
• Think Would they do that in real life?

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Dealing with Close Up Focusing

• If you are having trouble focusing on an object,
  its probably because you are too far away and
  zooming in on the subject.
• Try this
• Move the camera closer to your subject and zoom
  out wide.
• This gives the camera more depth of field which
  makes focusing easier.
• It often creates a more interesting shot because
  of the depth of field.

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Zooming Panning

• Beginners should avoid zooming and panning
  altogether until they can achieve extremely
  smooth zooms/pans.
• When used, be sure to time your zooms or pans
  to match the timing of a script.
• As you get better, try zooming and panning at the
  same time.

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What Rules do you see?
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